EBN-The disclosure of US war plans in a “commercial” chat group on the encrypted messaging app Signal by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has shocked US Defense Department officials and may have violated the Espionage Act.
This comes after The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg revealed that President Donald Trump‘s national security team mistakenly added him to a top-secret chat about US military strikes in Yemen, revealing highly sensitive information. Officials believe disclosing operational war plans ahead of planned strikes could put US forces in direct harm’s way.
Former FBI officials who worked on leaks described this as a major breach of national security. If personal phones were used in the group chat, the behavior would be even more egregious due to ongoing Chinese hacking efforts.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called this one of the most astonishing military leaks he’s read about in a long time. Hegseth attacked the editor of The Atlantic magazine, calling him a “so-called journalist.” The Defense Secretary denied having written letters about the war plans, saying that was all he could say.
The Atlantic editor-in-chief Goldberg responded to Hegseth’s statements, stating that it was not a war plan but a minute-by-minute account of what was about to happen, orchestrated by US Central Command.
Jeffrey Goldberg, a journalist with The Atlantic, claimed to have been joined to the Signal app group, which US President Donald Trump said did not disclose any confidential material.
Waltz, who was there in the meeting with the ambassadorial applicants, took aim at Goldberg, a journalist Trump has had disagreements with in the past.
“Many journalists in the city have been accused of spreading false information about the president, including the Russia hoax and the families of soldiers killed in action,” the national security advisor said.
Trump said , that American national security is stronger than ever, praising the National Security Advisor, characterizing him as a very fine man.
